The New England Patriots struggled to protect Drake Maye throughout their 29-13 Super Bowl 60 loss to the Seattle Seahawks.

Rookie left tackle Will Campbell absorbed a lot of blame for the offensive line’s poor performance. The 22-year-old allowed a whopping 14 pressures – the most by an individual during the 2025 season, per the NFL’s Next Gen Stats – against Seattle’s elite defensive front.

In total, Campbell surrendered 29 pressures across the Patriots’ four-game playoff run and was credited with allowing four of the 21 sacks Maye took during New England’s Super Bowl run, per Pro Football Focus.

Campbell’s struggles in pass protection have led to much discourse about his future. Many have brought up pre-draft concerns about the LSU product’s 32 5/8-inch arm length while wondering whether the 2025 NFL Draft’s No. 4 pick would be better served moving inside to guard long-term.

That said, many former NFL offensive tackles have come out in support of Campbell after his Super Bowl showing. They have opined the 22-year-old’s issues are more about technique – which can be corrected –than they are about arm length.

Former New Orleans Saints and Miami Dolphins left tackle Terron Armstead believes Campbell’s issues primarily stem from him not having ‘a solid foundation.’

‘His feet are constantly moving backwards before contact on 90% of these reps!’ Armstead wrote in a post to X. ‘Damn near impossible to anchor against power if your feet are not in the ground!!!’

Justin Pugh – who carved out an 11-year NFL career with the New York Giants and Arizona Cardinals despite having 32-inch arms – offered a similar take. He wrote that arm length may ‘slightly’ impact Campbell, but the bigger issue was that the rookie is ‘still learning.’

Several others – including former Cincinnati Bengals offensive lineman Willie Anderson, Cleveland Browns and Kansas City Chiefs right tackle Mitchell Schwartz and noted offensive line scout Duke Manyweather – also identified areas for improvement for Campbell, ranging from ‘mastering better sets’ to improving his ‘punch timing.’

Campbell will have an entire offseason to work through the issues that plagued him at the end of his rookie season and to further distance himself from the MCL sprain that affected him beginning in Week 12 of the 2025 NFL campaign.

And while the Patriots could shore up their offensive tackle depth during the offseason, they don’t seem likely to give up on Campbell as their full-time blindside blocker after just one season.

The Atlanta Falcons believed they were opening a potential Super Bowl window when they signed Kirk Cousins to a four-year, $180 million deal during the 2024 NFL offseason.

Two years later, Atlanta is expected to release Cousins, as USA TODAY Sports’ Tyler Dragon reports.

Where will Cousins go next? The 37-year-old should have plenty of options should he decide to play a 15th NFL season. Here’s a look at some of the veteran’s best fits as he prepares to hit free agency for the third time in his career.

Kirk Cousins landing spots

Minnesota Vikings

Cousins spent six seasons with the Vikings from 2018-23 before joining the Falcons. Could a reunion be in store between the two parties in 2026?

Minnesota is widely expected to bring in a veteran quarterback to challenge J.J. McCarthy for the starting job ahead of the 2024 first-round pick’s third season. Cousins would be a natural fit given that he thrived in Kevin O’Connell’s offense across his final two years with the Vikings.

Cousins started 25 games under O’Connell’s tutelage and posted a 17-8 record. He completed 67.1% of his passes for 6,878 yards, 47 touchdowns and 19 interceptions and was playing at an MVP level before a torn Achilles prematurely ended his 2023 season.

Cousins would be an ideal mentor for McCarthy and could serve as a solid stopgap if the 23-year-old’s struggles continue into the 2026 season. And ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported in a recent appearance on ‘The Pat McAfee Show’ the 37-year-old quarterback hasn’t ruled out returning to Minnesota.

‘I asked Kirk about Minnesota last week, and I didn’t get a no, but I didn’t get a yes,’ Schefter said. ‘It’s possible, but there are a lot of things out there that are possible with him.’

Pittsburgh Steelers

While the Vikings would offer Cousins familiarity, he might not have a chance to start ahead of McCarthy. That could lead the veteran to look for a fourth team ahead of his age-38 season, and the Steelers could be a reasonable landing spot.

Pittsburgh has been searching for a franchise quarterback since Ben Roethlisberger retired at the end of the 2021 NFL season. Cousins wouldn’t be a long-term option for the team, but he could represent a high-floor stopgap for new coach Mike McCarthy.

Of course, Cousins’ candidacy with the Steelers will depend on whether the team brings back Aaron Rodgers for a second season. NFL Media’s Tom Pelissero reports ‘odds are increasing’ for Rodgers to return to Pittsburgh in 2026 after helping the Steelers win the AFC North.

Rodgers and McCarthy worked together for 13 seasons with the Green Bay Packers, so that may make the 42-year-old McCarthy’s preferred aging quarterback to trust.

New York Jets

The Jets once again find themselves in a tough position evaluating their options at quarterback. They landed the No. 2 overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, which looked good until Dante Moore decided to return to Oregon for another season.

The Jets could still consider a quarterback like Ty Simpson with one of their two first-round picks, but adding a veteran stopgap like Cousins would take pressure off them as they evaluate the draft. That would give them leeway to pass on Simpson if they aren’t interested in the Alabama product and use the team’s two top-16 picks to address their many other areas of need.

For Cousins, this would be a marriage of convenience more than anything. The Jets represent Cousins’ best opportunity to both get paid – they have the fourth-most cap space for the 2026 season, per OverTheCap.com – and have a shot at starting during the 2026 season, so perhaps he can sell himself on pairing with Aaron Glenn and Frank Reich.

Cleveland Browns

It won’t necessarily be easy for the Browns to make a play for Cousins. They have a lot of money tied up at quarterback presently, as the final season of Deshaun Watson’s five-year, $230 million fully guaranteed contract carries an astronomical $80.7 million cap hit.

Still, the Browns can’t be ruled out of the potential Cousins sweepstakes. They could use a solid, veteran quarterback to compete with Watson and Shedeur Sanders for their starting job, and it’s easy to imagine a scenario where Cousins wins the job and emerges as a solid mentor for Sanders.

Miami Dolphins

NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport, Tom Pelissero and Mike Garafolo report that the Dolphins appear set to move on from Tua Tagovailoa during the 2026 NFL offseason.

If Miami does that, the team could look to target Malik Willis as a replacement. After all, the Dolphins’ new brain trust of coach Jeff Hafley and general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan both come from the Green Bay Packers, where Willis thrived as a backup over the last two seasons.

However, if the Dolphins miss out on Willis, Cousins could be a solid Plan B. Miami’s new offensive coordinator, Bobby Slowik, comes from the Shanahan coaching tree and overlapped with Cousins for two seasons in Washington back in 2012 and 2013.

Could Kirk Cousins retire?

Yes, Cousins will at least contemplate retirement, as Schefter implied his Feb. 9 appearance on ‘The Pat McAfee Show.’

‘I think he’d like to play, but he’s going to consider all his options,’ Schefter said of Cousins. ‘That could include TV, that could include retirement, whatever it is that he wants to do, he’ll have the option to do it.’

Cousins served as a guest analyst on CBS’ ‘NFL Today’ show during the 2025 NFL playoffs. He filled in for Matt Ryan after the former Falcons quarterback was named the team’s president of football at the start of the 2026 offseason.

So, if Cousins does decide to call it a career, his most likely landing spot could end up being on television.

That said, Cousins gave a strong indication he wants to continue playing during an interview with USA TODAY Sports’ Tyler Dragon at Super Bowl 60.

‘Looking forward to playing in ’26,’ Cousins said. ‘Just don’t know what it’ll look like.’

• Kenneth Walker III was named Super Bowl 60 MVP after the Seattle Seahawks’ 29-13 victory.
• Walker rushed for 135 yards, the most in a Super Bowl since Terrell Davis in 1998.
• He is the eighth running back in NFL history to win the Super Bowl MVP award.

SAN FRANCISCO – A day after winning Super Bowl 60 MVP, a soft-spoken Kenneth Walker III was asked how the last 24 hours changed him.

“I feel the same. I don’t think it changed much,” a smiling Walker said during the Seattle Seahawks’ Feb. 9 press conference.  

Walker might feel the same, but his career resume received a significant boost.

Walker joined an exclusive list on Feb. 8 as the eighth running back in NFL history to win Super Bowl MVP.

Walker rushed 27 times for 135 yards in the Seahawks’ 29-13 win, compiling 161 yards from scrimmage. Walker’s ground total was the most rushing yards by a player in the Super Bowl since Terrell Davis rumbled for 157 yards in Super Bowl 32. Walker is also the first running back to win Super Bowl MVP since Davis won the award for that 1998 performance.

“It’s a blessing to be in this position. It’s a short list (of running backs to win MVP),” Walker said. “It means a lot to have my name on that list.”

What made Walker’s performance more special is the fact he did it in front of his father, Kenneth Walker Jr., who had never seen his son play in the NFL in person before Sunday night.

“It was good just to have my family here at this stage. It meant a lot, especially for my dad, because he usually don’t like to come to games with big crowds. So, it meant a lot to have him there.”

Buy Seahawks championship pages, gear

Walker was the only consistent threat on Seattle’s offense throughout the first half. He rushed for 94 yards on 14 carries in the first 30 minutes. The running back had runs of 29 and 30 yards in the second quarter that set up a successful Jason Myers field goal. He hauled in a short pass from Sam Darnold and raced down the field for a 20-yard gain in the third quarter that led to another Myers field goal.

The 25-year-old running back displayed some elusiveness and was tough to bring down upon first contact. He forced nine missed tackles for an extra 79 yards, per Next Gen Stats.

From postseason to offseason, Walker will demand headlines

Walker’s Super Bowl 60 win and MVP performance capped off a stellar postseason for the running back. Walker gained a postseason-high 313 rushing yards and four rushing touchdowns in the playoffs. Additionally, his 417 yards from scrimmage in the playoffs led all players. He registered more than 100 yards from scrimmage in all three of Seattle’s playoff games.

The Seahawks running back will be an unrestricted free agent this offseason as Seattle’s top free agent entering the 2026 season. He proved to be invaluable during the Seahawks’ Super Bowl run.

Walker’s contract is something Seahawks general manager John Schneider is going to have to worry about in the near future. But right now, Walker earned himself a trip to Disneyland as the Super Bowl 60 MVP.

Follow USA TODAY Sports’ Tyler Dragon on X @TheTylerDragon.

The New England Patriots struggled to protect Drake Maye throughout their 29-13 Super Bowl 60 loss to the Seattle Seahawks.

Rookie left tackle Will Campbell absorbed a lot of blame for the offensive line’s poor performance. The 22-year-old allowed a whopping 14 pressures – the most by an individual during the 2025 season, per the NFL’s Next Gen Stats – against Seattle’s elite defensive front.

In total, Campbell surrendered 29 pressures across the Patriots’ four-game playoff run and was credited with allowing four of the 21 sacks Maye took during New England’s Super Bowl run, per Pro Football Focus.

Campbell’s struggles in pass protection have led to much discourse about his future. Many have brought up pre-draft concerns about the LSU product’s 32 5/8-inch arm length while wondering whether the 2025 NFL Draft’s No. 4 pick would be better served moving inside to guard long-term.

That said, many former NFL offensive tackles have come out in support of Campbell after his Super Bowl showing. They have opined the 22-year-old’s issues are more about technique – which can be corrected –than they are about arm length.

Former New Orleans Saints and Miami Dolphins left tackle Terron Armstead believes Campbell’s issues primarily stem from him not having ‘a solid foundation.’

‘His feet are constantly moving backwards before contact on 90% of these reps!’ Armstead wrote in a post to X. ‘Damn near impossible to anchor against power if your feet are not in the ground!!!’

Justin Pugh – who carved out an 11-year NFL career with the New York Giants and Arizona Cardinals despite having 32-inch arms – offered a similar take. He wrote that arm length may ‘slightly’ impact Campbell, but the bigger issue was that the rookie is ‘still learning.’

Several others – including former Cincinnati Bengals offensive lineman Willie Anderson, Cleveland Browns and Kansas City Chiefs right tackle Mitchell Schwartz and noted offensive line scout Duke Manyweather – also identified areas for improvement for Campbell, ranging from ‘mastering better sets’ to improving his ‘punch timing.’

Campbell will have an entire offseason to work through the issues that plagued him at the end of his rookie season and to further distance himself from the MCL sprain that affected him beginning in Week 12 of the 2025 NFL campaign.

And while the Patriots could shore up their offensive tackle depth during the offseason, they don’t seem likely to give up on Campbell as their full-time blindside blocker after just one season.

‘We just had a lot of quit in us tonight,’ Caldwell said after a 93-50 loss to South Carolina on Sunday; the 43-point margin a record for the largest defeat in Tennessee women’s basketball history. 

‘And that’s been something that’s been consistent with our team is ― we’re not comfortable, and things don’t go our way, and I have a team that’ll just quit on you. And you can’t do that in big games, can’t do that anytime in the SEC, but you certainly can’t do that at a program like this.’

Caldwell had no answers for why, when things are going badly, the Lady Vols struggle to stay composed. They seemingly unravel to the point of no return. (This season, the team has five ranked losses of 15 points or more, including a 30-point loss to UConn and 43-point loss to the Gamecocks. Three of those losses to top teams also included 20 turnovers.) Caldwell appeared to shift the blame to her team.

‘That’s a question for them, about why they can’t stick together,’ the Tennessee coach said.

When asked if she had advice for Caldwell as a young head coach, South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley offered up some reassuring words after Caldwell’s head-turning admissions.

‘For two, you gotta get your team to buy in, and sometimes, it’s tricking them because it’s a game. It’s a game that you really have to balance playing with the players because they know they played like ish, right? They know they did. Sometimes you need to bring what good happened. If you can find some good in it … some of that might just kind of relax them a little bit.’

Staley also shared what she thinks Caldwell and Tennessee can do to get back on track after losing three of their last four games.

‘Competitors know when they don’t play well. Competitors know when they need to change their mindsets,’ the Gamecocks coach said.

‘You need the majority of your team thinking the same way, and it has to be positive. If it’s negative, you’re going to get negative results. So, I would start from there.’

CORTINA d’AMPEZZO, Italy — Lindsey Vonn has a complex fracture in her tibia that will require multiple surgeries.

Vonn made her first comments since her horrific crash in the Olympic downhill Sunday, Feb. 8, saying in an Instagram post that she knew the risks involved.

‘While yesterday did not end the way I had hoped, and despite the intense physical pain it caused, I have no regrets,” Vonn said. ‘Standing in the starting gate yesterday was an incredible feeling that I will never forget. Knowing I stood there having a chance to win was a victory in and of itself.

“I also knew that racing was a risk. It always was and always will be an incredibly dangerous sport.”

Vonn made clear that her torn ACL had nothing to do with the crash. She injured her left knee – she also had bone bruising and meniscus damage – in another crash on Jan. 30 in the final downhill before the Milano Cortina Olympics.

Skiing with a torn ACL is not unheard of, and Vonn said her knee was stable and strong. She did intensive rehab between the crash and the Olympics, as well as pool workouts and plyometrics. She completed two training runs without issue, including posting the third-fastest time in the second one.

‘In downhill ski racing the difference between a strategic line and a catastrophic injury can be as small as 5 inches. I was simply 5 inches too tight on my line when my right arm hooked inside of the gate, twisting me and resulted in my crash,” Vonn wrote. “My ACL and past injuries had nothing to do with my crash whatsoever.”

Vonn hooked her arm around the fourth gate on the Olimpia delle Tofane course, which spun her around and flung her into the hard, snow-covered surface. She then tumbled end over end several times before coming to a stop.

Vonn was treated on the hill for roughly 13 minutes before being loaded into a helicopter and, five minutes later, airlifted to a local hospital. After an assessment there, she was transferred to Ca’Foncello Hospital in Treviso, about two hours away. She underwent surgery later that day, and both the hospital and U.S. Skiing said she was in stable condition.

‘Similar to ski racing, we take risks in life. We dream. We love. We jump. And sometimes we fall. Sometimes our hearts are broken. Sometimes we don’t achieve the dreams we know we could have. But that is the also the beauty of life; we can try,’ Vonn wrote in her Instagram post.

‘I tried. I dreamt. I jumped,’ she said. ‘I hope if you take away anything from my journey it’s that you all have the courage to dare greatly. Life is too short not to take chances on yourself. Because the only failure in life is not trying.’

Vonn is among the greatest skiers of all-time, a three-time Olympic medalist whose 84 World Cup wins are behind only Mikaela Shiffrin and Ingemar Stenmark. Vonn was forced to retire in 2019 because of the physical pain from a series of injuries to her right knee.

But after having a partial knee replacement in April 2024, Vonn felt so good she began contemplating a comeback.

‘I retired in 2019 because my body said no more, not because I didn’t want to continue racing,” Vonn told USA TODAY Sports in October. “So I feel like this could be an incredible moment to end this chapter of my life and move forward in a really exciting and peaceful way.”

Cortina was a big part of that.

Cortina has always been one of Vonn’s favorite places. She made her first World Cup podium there, winning a bronze medal in the downhill in 2004, and 12 of her 84 World Cup victories came there. To ski in an Olympics there, maybe have those be her final races, seemed a fitting end.

“It’s such a special place for me,” Vonn said in October. “I don’t think I would have tried this comeback if the Olympics weren’t in Corina. If it had been anywhere else, I would probably say it’s not worth it.

“But for me, there’s something special about Corina that always pulls me back.”

Vonn had mixed results after she returned to the World Cup circuit in 2024, but she finished the season with a silver medal in the super-G at the World Cup finals in Sun Valley, Idaho. After a full off-season to train and fine-tune her equipment, the 41-year-old Vonn was unstoppable.

She won the season’s first downhill, in St. Moritz, and another in Zauchensee. She was on the podium in all five downhill races, and two of the first three super-Gs.

Vonn led the downhill standings, putting her in position to join Mikaela Shiffrin as the only skiers to win nine season titles in a single discipline. Vonn also was second in the super-G standings and sixth in the overall.

What is a complex tibia fracture?

A tibia fracture is a break in the shin bone that is an emergency needing immediate treatment. ‘Your tibias are some of the strongest bones in your body. It usually takes a lot of force to break one,’ according to the Cleveland Clinic. ‘You probably won’t be able to stand, walk or put weight on your leg if you have a broken shin bone.’

A complex fracture involves multiple breaks in a bone and damaged soft tissue, according Yale Medicine. Symptoms include extreme pain, numbness and, sometimes, a bone that protrudes through the skin. Treatment involves stabilization and surgery.

Patriots’ rookie Kyle Williams had eyes on more than just the ball on Super Bowl Sunday.

The 23-year-old wide receiver and kickoff returner was among several people who chased after a shirtless fan who bolted onto the field at the beginning of the fourth quarter.

A TikTok user captured and shared the moment, which shows security pursuing the man down the field before Williams breaks into a run.

According to previous USA TODAY reporting, the shirtless man ran on from the direction of the Seattle Seahawks’ end zone, briefly forcing a pause in the action.

The fan managed to run a good length of the field as security staff tried to converge on him, but actually split on the opposite half of the field. The man can be seen spreading his arms in a victorious pose as he continued his sprint.

Watch Patriots’ Kyle Williams chase shirtless fan across Super Bowl field

Williams left his huddle and jogged toward the man, in what appeared to be a half-hearted attempt to stop the fan, as he approached another pocket of guards.

Williams stood guard, staying close to the fan until security apprehended him at the 10-yard line.

The Patriots scored their first points of the night on a touchdown pass to Mack Hollins shortly thereafter. But the luck from Williams’s good deed didn’t last long, as the Patriots lost to the Seattle Seahawks 29-13.

USA TODAY has reached out to Levi’s Stadium for comment.

The Charles Bediako eligibility saga has come to a head for Alabama men’s basketball.

The motion for a temporary injunction has been denied by Judge Daniel Pruet, according to The Tuscaloosa News ― part of the USA TODAY Network ― on Monday, Feb. 9. That means the 7-foot center’s time with the Crimson Tide and return to college basketball are over.

The decision overturns the temporary restraining order by Judge James Roberts Jr. that Bediako received on Jan. 21 against the NCAA that made him immediately eligible.

Bediako originally played for Alabama from 2021 to 2023 before appearing in 82 games across three seasons in the G League.

Roberts, since then, recused himself from the case due to a conflict of interest as an Alabama donor.

In an NCAA affidavit filed on Thursday, Feb. 5, in Tuscaloosa County (Alabama), SEC commissioner Greg Sankey asked the court to rule against Bediako, siding with the NCAA.

“I respectfully ask the Court to uphold the NCAA eligibility rules challenged in this case, which are essential to the integrity of college sports, to the educational mission they serve, and to the opportunities they provide for current and future student-athletes,” Sankey wrote in the affidavit.

Bediako appeared in five games for the Crimson Tide, averaging 10 points, 4.6 rebounds and 1.2 blocks per game in 21.6 minutes. He had 12 points in Alabama’s 96-92 win over Alabama on Saturday, Feb. 7.

The NCAA’s argument against Bediako’s eligibility is that he signed multiple professional contracts since leaving Alabama after the 2022-23 season, which make him ineligible to return to the sport, according to the organization’s longstanding eligibility rules.

Bediako’s return to college basketball is happening during a period when several former G League players have been added to college rosters for this season.

NCAA statement on Charles Bediako being ruled ineligible

NCAA President Charlie Baker released a statement on Bediako being ruled ineligible on Monday, Feb. 9.

“Common sense won a round today. The court saw this for what it is: an attempt by professionals to pivot back to college and crowd out the next generation of students,’ he wrote in a statement released on social media.

‘College sports are for students, not for people who already walked away to go pro and now want to hit the ‘undo’ button at the expense of a teenager’s dream. While we’re glad the court upheld the rules our members actually want, one win doesn’t fix the national mess of state laws. It’s time for Congress to stop watching from the sidelines and help us provide some actual stability.”

Will Alabama have to forfeit games Charles Bediako played in?

No, Alabama will not have to forfeit the games Bediako played in because he was eligible due to a TRO. He appeared in five games with the Crimson Tide, with the team going 3-2.

Alabama beat Auburn 96-92 on Saturday, Feb. 7, and defeated Texas A&M 100-97 on Feb. 4. The Crimson Tide also had a 90-64 win over Missouri. They lost to Tennessee and Florida in that span.

MILAN — Ellie Kam wasn’t not going to let her 2026 Winter Olympics gold medal leave her while sleeping.

The pairs skater with Danny O’Shea was part of the Team USA squad that won the figure skating team event in thrilling fashion, with their triumphant free skate playing a major role in the first place finish. It was the first medal for the duo making their Olympic debut, and Kam revealed to USA TODAY Sports she kept it close by the time she fell asleep.

“I slept with mine under my pillow,’ Kam said. ‘It’s cushioned, it’s not going to go anywhere, it’s not going to fall off, unless I have a crazy rumble tumble in my sleep. But I don’t think that’s going to happen, so I think we’re safe there.’

Kam and O’Shea showed off their medals on Monday, Feb. 9 as there other athletes have had issues with their medals breaking. Speed skier Breezy Johnson was the first American to win gold in Milano Cortina and while celebrating, the medal came off its ribbon. She said her medal is not ‘crazy broken, but it’s a little broken.’

She wasn’t the only one to have issues. Kam and O’Shea’s teammate Alysa Liu also had her medal detach from the ribbon, documenting it on social media. Both Kam and O’Shea said the medals are ‘really hefty’ and said they can understand why there have been issues with them so early in the Games.

‘They’re very substantial and real metal, and I think that’s why people are having issues with it because it’s maybe a little bit stronger than the ribbon,’ he said. ‘But that’s what you want in an Olympic medal, right? Something that’s solid. I’m so happy with it.’

The gold medals at the 2026 Winter Olympics are 506 grams, but includes just six grams of gold. The rest of it consists of silver, according to organizers. The Olympic medals have a diameter of about 80 millimeters and are around 10 millimeters thick.